Press Releases

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Massive Budget Cuts Proposed in “Skinny Budget”

May 2, 2025

In response to the release of the “skinny budget” released by the White House today, Carl Schmid, executive director of the HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute, issued the following statement: “While there are still many unknowns, what we do know is the budget the Trump administration proposed today contains massive cuts that will damage the future health of our country. On the positive side, it appears that most existing HIV care and treatment programs, including most components of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program and its part of the Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE) initiative, would remain intact. If true, this marks a reversal from the leaked draft budget which eliminated the EHE initiative. However, the budget completely ignores HIV prevention at CDC, which includes surveillance, testing, PrEP programs, and linkage to care. It is not known if it is zeroed out, cut, or moved to another part of HHS, as has previously been reported. The Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative is also not on the list of programs being eliminated, but since it is not a detailed budget this is not fully known. The cuts to the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program would impact critical services such as dental reimbursements, training, and community-driven implementation research.”

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President Trump Must Restore “Ending the HIV Epidemic” funding & other domestic HIV programs

Apr 25, 2025

“We hope this is one of those instances of ‘mistakes will be made’ and urge President Trump to include funding in his budget to maintain our nation’s HIV response to keep Americans healthy. During his first term, President Trump realized that although we have the tools to end HIV through innovative treatment and prevention medications, the results remained relatively stagnant and by efficiently investing resources in the communities with the highest number of infections, over time we can end HIV. The initiative, which builds upon the existing CDC prevention and Ryan White HIV/AIDS treatment programs, has demonstrated success with a 21-percent reduction in HIV incidence in those jurisdictions that received enhanced funding compared to a 6-percent drop in those that did not. This resulted in 9,500 fewer infections, which saved $5.1 billion in lifetime medical costs.

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Eighty Advocacy Organizations Urge Labor Secretary to Close Harmful EHB Loophole

Apr 22, 2025

The HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute, along with more than 75 organizations representing patients, providers, and public health advocates, is urging U.S. Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer to issue a promised federal rule that would close a harmful loophole that allows insurers, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), and third-party vendors to exploit patient copay assistance programs for financial gain. In a letter sent today, the groups call on the Department of Labor (DOL) to address a gap in the enforcement of the Essential Health Benefits (EHB) provision of federal law—one that enables insurers, PBMs, and third-party vendors to designate certain covered drugs as “non-essential,” evading cost-sharing protections for patients.

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Statement on upcoming Supreme Court oral arguments on preventive services coverage requirement case

Apr 16, 2025

We urge the Court to uphold the preventive services requirement, as supported by the Trump administration. President Trump and Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert Kennedy Jr. are prioritizing prevention as a key component of making our country healthier. Preventing chronic infectious diseases such as HIV and hepatitis through testing and PrEP covered by private insurance is critically vital, especially now that the federal government is seeking to reduce spending. Without the coverage requirement, people at risk of HIV and hepatitis will likely forgo accessing the services or depend more on government programs for their testing and PrEP. However, we are not adequately addressing the needs of the uninsured today, and, given current budget constraints, which are bound to get worse, we will certainly not be able to afford the necessary preventive services for the insured without the coverage requirement. If we are to prevent infectious disease and other health conditions, the Court has no choice but to uphold access to these necessary preventive services.

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Statement on Decimation of CDC HIV Prevention Staff and Other Key Programs

Apr 1, 2025

In a matter of just a couple days, we are losing our nation’s ability to prevent HIV. The expertise of the staff, along with their decades of leadership, has now been destroyed and cannot be replaced. We will feel the impacts of these decisions for years to come and it will certainly, sadly, translate into an increase in new HIV infections and higher medical costs.

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